Participants march to 'keep the dream alive'

Participants march along the Rails to Trails pathway along Marine Boulevard to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

John Althouse/The Daily News

By By ANIESA HOLMES - Daily News Staff

Published: Monday, January 21, 2013 at 04:53 PM.

A sea of ages and races came together on Monday morning to honor the memory and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.

The 6th annual Keeping the Dream Alive Committee Peace and Unity March was held along the walking trail on U.S. 17 North to Thompson Street to remember the late civil rights leader, who would have turned 84 on this year. Participants carried signs bearing King’s image, held hands and sang in unison along their journey,

Keeping the Dream Alive Committee founder Mary Louise Pearson Moore said that this year’s march was particularly special as the nation celebrated the holiday and President Barack Obama’s public inauguration on the same day.

“If it weren’t for Dr. Martin Luther King, I don’t think that Obama would be up there this morning,” Moore said. “We are following what Dr. Martin Luther King wanted us to do, and that is by keeping this dream alive by holding hands, loving one another, reaching out and just making this legacy keep going on.”

Moore said that she participated in her first marches in Raleigh and Morehead City several years ago before bringing a similar event to Jacksonville. The committee has since grown from 10 members to more than 20 and gained more than 200 participants for the march. Several honorary members were also recognized, including Sheriff Ed Brown, who participates in the march every year.

“Onslow County is a beautiful county because it has beautiful people, and those people come from all nationalities and all backgrounds,” Brown said. “I have not missed a march since it started. Ms. Mary Moore is a lively lady and has adopted me as part of her family.”

Following the march, residents gathered for a ceremony at the Disabled American Veterans building that included music, praise dance and special tributes to King and Obama. Keynote speaker Dr. Deborah Houston, assistant professor of management for Mount Olive College, addressed race relations across the country and the importance of respect among people of diverse races and backgrounds, something that King emphasized in his speeches and during demonstrations.

A sea of ages and races came together on Monday morning to honor the memory and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.

The 6th annual Keeping the Dream Alive Committee Peace and Unity March was held along the walking trail on U.S. 17 North to Thompson Street to remember the late civil rights leader, who would have turned 84 on this year. Participants carried signs bearing King’s image, held hands and sang in unison along their journey,

Keeping the Dream Alive Committee founder Mary Louise Pearson Moore said that this year’s march was particularly special as the nation celebrated the holiday and President Barack Obama’s public inauguration on the same day.

“If it weren’t for Dr. Martin Luther King, I don’t think that Obama would be up there this morning,” Moore said. “We are following what Dr. Martin Luther King wanted us to do, and that is by keeping this dream alive by holding hands, loving one another, reaching out and just making this legacy keep going on.”

Moore said that she participated in her first marches in Raleigh and Morehead City several years ago before bringing a similar event to Jacksonville. The committee has since grown from 10 members to more than 20 and gained more than 200 participants for the march. Several honorary members were also recognized, including Sheriff Ed Brown, who participates in the march every year.

“Onslow County is a beautiful county because it has beautiful people, and those people come from all nationalities and all backgrounds,” Brown said. “I have not missed a march since it started. Ms. Mary Moore is a lively lady and has adopted me as part of her family.”

Following the march, residents gathered for a ceremony at the Disabled American Veterans building that included music, praise dance and special tributes to King and Obama. Keynote speaker Dr. Deborah Houston, assistant professor of management for Mount Olive College, addressed race relations across the country and the importance of respect among people of diverse races and backgrounds, something that King emphasized in his speeches and during demonstrations.

“I think his legacy is probably more relevant today than it was when he was alive,” Houston said. “I think he would be ecstatic with what we’ve achieved as far as technology and the election and reelection of President Obama, but he also would be saddened at the progress we’ve made in race relations.”

Moore said that she hopes that participants and the community are inspired to keep King’s dream alive through participating in the march and establishing unity between residents for many generations.

“I just hope everyone saw that we came together and that it’s not a race thing,” Moore said. “I just hope that even the kids learned to be together and sing ‘We Shall Overcome,’ and we overcame.”